Guidance
by teenburger
Summary: Dawn travels to the Kalos region hoping to start a brand new journey to learn more about herself and Pokemon. When she unexpectedly meets a familiar face, she's drawn to the good company he may keep.


November 7th 2013

This was the day. She told herself many times that she'd do it—it was just a long way coming. It was a hard decision, deciding whether or not she was ready to make the jump. She hadn't traveled to somewhere new since Kanto; which was a delightful experience filled with many contests and some wonderful winnings on her part.

This, however, was not a journey to be made for her career-she yearned to see new places. When she was a younger girl, she dreamed of travelling the Kalos region. No, there weren't any contests halls…but the region itself was supposedly the region of romance. Right in the middle of it all was the fabulous Lumoise City. So many boutiques, cafes and sights to been seen—like the Prism Tower.

She leaned against the rails of the ferry, watching the waves roll by and the smell of the salty air breeze wafting into her nose. She breathed it in deeply—there was something she loved about the ocean…it was just so calming to her. She much preferred to travel this way than by air.  
She knew her ultimate goal was to see Lumoise City, travel to new towns, visit as many new boutiques as she could—and find new pokemon. It'd be nice switching up the team a little, even though her pokemon have been loyal to her all this time. Her Empoleon would never leave her side, so she had taken him with her along with Buneary, Quilava and Togekiss. She smiled at the thought of her sweet pokemon and sighed a breath of relief. She wouldn't be anywhere without them.  
It had been some time since she traveled with Ash. She learned a lot about herself and her pokemon. She became a stronger coordinator in the matter of a couple years because of all the people she had met along the way. When she decided to travel Kanto, she wasn't alone. Zoey had been with her for the majority of the journey and the two of them took on the contest world by storm.

But this time, she was alone.

Not like that was a bad thing—it really wasn't. She had her pokemon, so she wasn't 'technically' alone. It was just—sometimes pokemon don't hold up the most interesting conversations. Dawn had to admit she was a tiny bit vain; she enjoyed talking about fashion, she loved the center stage, she liked being around people when she looked her best…but there was none of that on this trip.

Dawn thought of asking May to join her, but she had already helped her out so much whilst visiting LaRousse, which May was currently residing. Dawn had yet to actually travel Hoenn, but she was hoping the gap in contesting with a 'spiritual' journey may help her find herself a little more. Maybe when May's schedule was a little more free, she'd ask. The Hoenn coordinator was busy making a name for herself alongside her famous boyfriend, Drew. The two had made quite the dynamic duo in the contesting world…she was a tad jealous.

She straightened herself out as the boat drew closer to her destination. She recalled the port city was Ambrette Town, which wasn't too far off from Cyllage City. Regardless, there was a really wonderful aquarium in Ambrette Town that she was anxious to see. Dawn could see the coast of Kalos far off in the distance and her butterflies began to flutter in her stomach. She was so excited—but nervous too. She was curious to see if she could actually manage travelling by herself.

"You can do it, just have faith in yourself, Dawn." She said to herself, placing her hands on her hips, "No worries, right?" Dawn nodded at her own catchphrase, one that hadn't left her all these years, for good reason. She calmed herself down, there was plenty of time to prepare before they docked in Kalos. She decided she'd return back to her cabin and sort out her little luggage before the ship reached it's destination.

xxx

Back in her cabin, Dawn had checked her belongings thrice before she was absolutely sure she was okay. She knew she made sure before she took the ferry from Snowbelle because her mother had called her several times just to check.

Dawn thought her mother would become less attached to the idea of her leaving with every journey she took. It'd had been seven years since her very first one, and 2013 was the year of change for Dawn. She looked at herself in the full length mirror that hung on the back of the door. She smoothed out her skirt and leaned in closer to fix the clips in her hair. After all this time, she'd figured she would have dumped them by now, but they just wouldn't slip away from her—they were a part of her now.

She definitely looked older. Her sense of style changed, no more hat or backpack or clunky boots; stuff that she wore when she was a kid. She still liked her signature colours though, pink and black still rose to the top in her favourites category, but they definitely worked.

"Lookin' good today, Dawn." She smiled at herself in the mirror. She felt good. Today was a good day to start a new chapter in her life. She was Dawn Berlitz, a Sinnoh top coordinator at the sprouting age of seventeen. Nothing could get her down—she was on top of the world. Dawn checked her poketch before exiting her cabin one final time. "It's show time, girl."

xxx

Dawn walked off the dock with an ecstatic stride. Never so much was she excited to get off a boat in her lifetime. Ambrette Town was small, but that was a good start. If she started in a huge city, she'd most likely get lost—she was pretty good at getting lost. She pulled a map from her bag and looked at it carefully.

"So if I want to go to the Aquarium…hmmm," She spoke to herself quietly, hidden behind the map, walking as she read. A dangerous action for the slightly clumsy girl, but she thought she could handle it. Besides, who would walk into the girl with the giant map in front of her face?

"Oof." Dawn's map became crinkled as a body formed a large crease where she was looking. Her forehead made contact with the lumpy figure and she recoiled a bit before rubbing her sore forehead gently.

"Ahh, sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." She said politely before lowering the map from her face. It seemed she made contact with a grey backpack, which explained the density of her impact. The tall figure pivoted slightly to face her with a grunt and Dawn's jaw nearly dropped. She kept it in check though, just to avoid some minor unnecessary gawking.

"Obviously." The mauve-haired trainer merely stated before turning back on his way. Dawn held the map tightly in her hands for a moment before queuing in that the trainer was leaving her behind.

"Hey!" Dawn quickly shoved the map back into her bag before jogging towards the boy. She knew she wasn't imagining things—she couldn't possibly. She remembered faces, she really did. It'd had been seven years, so she couldn't discount the fact that she 'could' be wrong…her thoughts were becoming jumbled. She caught up to the boy and began walking beside him.

"I know I just ran into you, but don't you think I deserve a 'hello' or 'how are you?' after all this time?" Dawn looked up at the boy's facial features—there was no way she was wrong. She had just ran into Paul Rebolledo, the stubborn, grumpy trainer from Sinnoh. Though, he wasn't exactly the eleven year old brat he used to be…maybe.

Paul glanced down at her when he noticed that she was talking to him. He furrowed his brows, as if to be slightly annoyed before sighing.  
"I don't know who you are, so, no I don't think you deserve such a casual greeting from me." Dawn stood still and watched him walk away for mere moments before something in her urged for her to continue forward in the conversation.

"You seriously don't know who I am? This is what, the second, third time you've forgotten about me?" Dawn frowned, "I wouldn't be offended if I didn't know you for so long. Are you sure you have no idea who I am?" He stopped and took a couple seconds to eyeball her up and down.

"Yes."

Dawn huffed, "Dawn Berlitz!" She gestured to herself, "You know, the girl that traveled with Ash Ketchum in Sinnoh? We met on multiple occasions, hell, we even spoke to each other during the Lily of the Valley Conference! You don't remember me at all?" She threw her arms into the air in disbelief at his cruddy memory.

"The coordinator?" Dawn's eyes widened at his revelation.

"Yes, that's me! The coordinator—with a name!" Her sarcasm seeped through that sentence enough for Paul to pick it up quickly. He raised a brow.

"I'm not obliged to remember anyone's name, much less a coordinator."

"Excuse me? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing to be offended about, I just meant that I'm not really affliated with any coordinators. I don't even know much about it." Dawn's brows were still furrowed, but it seemed Paul had at least grown up a little since their last conversation.

"Never mind, I get it." Dawn let it slide, "Anyway, what are you doing in Kalos?"

"None of your business." Paul replied bluntly._Obviously he's travelling this region for training, Dawn. He's a pokemon trainer, that's what they do_. Dawn nodded. That meant he was taking on the gyms in the region. Dawn had thought about it for a while before she left…if that's what she wanted to do. She only really challenged a handful of gyms, but they weren't really her style.  
Alright, you don't have to tell me…" Dawn trailed off. She pulled out her map again to see if she was on the right course. She still wanted to see the Aquarium.

"So, why are you following me?" Dawn stopped right in her tracks. She actually had no idea why she was still following Paul. She had got the information she wanted; it was indeed Paul. Maybe she was so used to following people and travelling with companions that it just sort of stuck with her.

"Uh…no reason…" Dawn looked at the ground before pointing at her map, "I was actually looking for the Aquarium before I bumped into you. It's actually in this direction too, so…yeah." Paul merely grunted and Dawn was fine with that. Better nothing than the few choice words he could have used.

"If you want, would you like to come see it with me?" Dawn was open to some company, even if it was Paul. Going to the Aquarium sounded like a great idea at first, but even more so with someone to go with. That said, she wasn't so sure he'd comply and skip merrily with her to see some pokemon in water tanks.

His look pretty much said it all. Dawn could remember why she never really talked to him much; but he was such a weird person. Something about him…the way his mind ticked—she really wanted to know why and how it became that way. She knew he wasn't a bad person, just an anti-social one and that wasn't a bad quality either. Some people just liked being left alone, but not Dawn. A few moments passed and it seemed that Paul noticed the anticipation fade away from her rosy features.

"You're serious, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm serious!" Dawn huffed, "I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't want you to join me—that'd just be stupid."

He grunted and pressed onward. Dawn continued to trail him, looking down at her shoes whilst she walked. Her hands bounced off her pelvis as she cupped them together behind her back, perfectly content with the silent company. He wasn't exactly telling her to 'go away', so why would she? If she was bothering him, he'd probably would have said by then, she remembered him being vocal about things that bothered him—unless it was weakness.

Dawn watched Paul's steps slow and she adjusted to his speed. Once he stopped she turned her head up to see his face. She knew Paul was older than her, only by a tad though; one, maybe two years? He'd had grown rather tall in the time she hadn't seen him, almost a good ten inches. Her measly 5'3 frame was really nothing compared to his 6'0 plus. His eyebrows were raised on his grimace plastered face. Dawn returned the action, not intentionally wanting to mock him.

"Isn't this your stop?" Paul gestured a thumb over to the Aquarium and Dawn's eyes followed. There it was, standing in all it's glory. Her heart fluttered with joy as she thought of all the new pokemon she'd get to see. Aquariums were really beautiful, the atmosphere was almost romantic, if Dawn allowed herself to pry her face off the glass.

"I know you probably don't want to, but you should come with me!" Dawn rooted through her bag to find the map, unfolded it in front of Paul and pointed out their destination. "See? Now, I'm no genius but the back entrance out of the Aquarium leads to a faster route to Cyllage City!" Dawn folded the map back up. "I mean, there's a gym in that city, right? If you haven't challenged it…that is…" She trailed off, avoiding eye contact with the trainer. Her confident demeanour dwindled as she noticed that Paul's expression hadn't changed. "I mean…I'll pay for you if—"

"No need," Paul sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He placed his hands in his pockets and began walking towards the Aquairum. Dawn's eyes widened in surprise, she was pretty much convinced he would decline again. Then again, maybe Paul just wanted her out of his hair. She sprung into step and walked into the Aquarium by his side.

"Oh, wow!" Dawn pressed her hands against the glass, "It's a Skrelp!" She beckoned Paul to come over, whom was looking at the pokemon at a reasonable distance. "I've never seen one before…they're kind of cute, but sort of sad lookin', huh?" Paul merely nodded and went on his merry way. Dawn frowned as she watched Paul continue without her, but she knew he wasn't excited to see new Pokemon; he just wanted to get out fast.

Dawn barely had any time to look at the Pokemon because of how fast he'd been going through the different sections. Dawn knew very well that she didn't have to follow him, nor did he have to wait up for her. He at least agreed to coming into the Aquarium, but it was most likely because it was the most convenient route.

"Hey, wait up!" Dawn chased after the fast-paced trainer, "You're not even looking at all…aren't you the least bit interested in new pokemon? I mean, I came to Kalos to see and meet new pokemon and they're some right in front of you!"

"_Looking_ and catching are two different things," Paul replied, "Besides, it's nothing my pokedex can't tell me." Dawn frowned, folding her arms as she walked next to the walking, talking, wet towel. They walked along the narrow strip, the luminescent blue hue from the tanks lighting their trip. Dawn watched as a Dewgong swam quickly by, performing a couple of loops in the water…perfectly content with it's life. Dawn always liked swimming, she would often swim in Lake Valour with Empoleon on sunny days. It was getting a little too cold for that, but the cold weather was just as exciting as the warm.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" Dawn let her thoughts slip off her tongue, her eyes focused on the glimmering waters. "It's very inspiring, I can feel an act coming to me as I watch the pokemon swim." Regardless that she was putting off the contest scene for now, she still wanted to get inspired for new routines on her journey. She feared of becoming rusty or boring. She wasn't a one-trick-ponyta and refused to settle on one style.

"Coordinators find inspiration in weird places."

"It's not weird," Dawn furrowed a brow, "It's beautiful." She sighed watching a school of Luvdisc float by slowly. "I know I think differently from you, and there's nothing wrong with how you train—even if I don't agree with it sometimes." She looked back at Paul, "Contests are hard work. You have to train hard, experiment, grab inspiration from wherever you may be…and be a good trainer in battle." Dawn's voice quieted at that last part. Dawn had figured this was the area she lacked the most. Zoey had always been on top of Dawn in most contests, because she was a good trainer overall—she could fight the battles and win.

"I never said it wasn't hard work." That surprised Dawn. Paul never really commented on contests before, or, not that she heard of. He seemed pretty close minded to anything that wasn't his particular way of thinking, especially when it came to Ash's way of training Pokemon. Dawn bit her cheek. She had been making a lot of assumptions about Paul within an hour or so of meeting for the first time in seven years. She should have respected the fact that he probably grew up, like she did.

"You're a good coordinator," he continued, clearing his throat slightly. Dawn raised a brow in surprise.

"I didn't pin you as the type to watch contests—didn't you say—?."

"I don't." He clarified, "I just know that you are pretty damn determined, which means you work hard." Dawn grinned upon hearing a small compliment from Paul. Never in her lifetime would she figure she'd ever receive one from him.

"Thanks," she bopped him on the arm in slight embarrassment, "you're not a half bad trainer yourself." Dawn could see the tiniest smirk twinge the corner of his lips. She was satisfied. This was good company. He didn't have to be chatty, he'd just have to listen. It seemed that Paul was pretty good at that.

As they rounded around the last corner, Dawn could see the exit to the Aquarium was just up ahead. She felt a little sad that her trip was so short, but it couldn't be helped. She had fun. Paul didn't seem to mind it too much either and he was one step closer to Cyllage this way, so she figured it was a win-win situation. As they walked out the door and into the bright daylight, Dawn's eyes squinted as they tried to adjust to the sun.

"I'll be on my way now." Dawn's head quickly turned at the sound of Paul's voice. He was leaving already? They had just started talking! She frowned, she was hoping to have a little more time. Dawn wanted to know how far he'd come since the past, the trainer he was today. He was strong and he knew a lot about pokemon and…battling. Something Dawn was still lacking, maybe the thing she needed the most to help her become a better coordinator. She watched his figure get gradually smaller before a sudden ball of confidence rose in her chest.

"Wait!" She ran as fast as she could, hoping her words would reach him. She saw him stop, pivoting to see a crazy girl, screaming and running at him. Once she got up with him she took a few deep breaths, trying to steady her body and her rapid heartbeat. She held her last breath and bit her lip.

"Please let me travel with you!"


End file.
